Hello everyone, I hope you all enjoy the story so far !
Puffgirl1952 the 2nd: (interesting name btw) thank you so much for reviewing and being so into the story, it warms my heart to see support like that. My story says complete because I have all chapters ready I just need to find the time to publish it all, but since it's a short story it shouldn't take too long hopefully. See you soon, lots of love.
Enjoy!
Chapter 3: Going North
A soldier came to wake Karandra up. He gave her fresh water and a piece of bread. It surprised her how well she was treated by the humans, when Orcs treated her like vermin. She might have spent the night in a prison cell, yet she never had such comfort in her whole life. And could she blame the humans for putting her in a cell?
She ate on the way, following the guard, surprised that she was not enchained, or dragged along roughly. He first brought her to the blacksmith, who removed the chain from her neck. She was then led to the armoury. A soldier was helping Garona put on the pieces of a black and silver armour. She looked around, unsure of where to go or what to do.
"Karandra, come here".
Lothar's voice was gentle and calm. She felt her shoulders relaxed at the sound and she walked to him.
"These should fit," he told her as he pointed to an armour similar to Garona's only it was blue with golden decoration.
She frowned, unsure. She had never worn an armour before. Only the poor excuse of clothes she had. She first put on leather pants, and a black sleeveless leather – again – shirt. Lothar had the decency to look the other way as she changed. Usually she didn't care if someone saw her, but with him it was different. He scared her a bit yet she found his presence oddly comforting.
He motioned for her to put her foot on a table, and once her leg was high enough he tied the piece of armour in front of her shin. He did the same with the other leg, let her put on the boots herself, then helped her with the arm protections. His fingers lightly brushed on her forearm in the process and it took all her willpower not to jump back. This man probably had magic, he could send sparks in her skin!
He turned her so he was facing her back, and helped her with the breastplate. He tied the laces on her back, moving her hair away as he did so. She swiftly turned to face him. They were inches away from each other. She couldn't hold back her shiver as he put his arms around her waist. When she saw he was only securing her belt, she felt… disappointed? Or was it frustrated? She couldn't tell. She couldn't understand.
"No weapon?" she asked when he took a step back.
"I'm here to protect you," he replied in a low voice.
His voice… And that smile… Hell, it was sending her over the edge! She did all she could to hide how flushed she was but he had probably noticed it anyway. She looked up once again and saw his eyes on her. She felt a bigger blush creep on her cheeks.
"Wh-what are you looking at?" she stuttered.
He didn't reply but his grin widened slightly. Then it hit her. She was falling for him. She took two steps back in a rush, appalled. She couldn't. They would kill her. They would kill her anyway, but with that she was exposing herself to be tortured in the most painful ways when they found her. Then she heard him again in her head. "I'm here to protect you". But still, she couldn't. She was not like him. She was a bastard, half-breed, and a slave. She was weak. She was useless.
"Come on Karandra, we have a long road ahead of us," he told her as he grabbed his sword and went into another part of the armoury, oblivious to her mental struggle.
They gathered with Garona, the young human – Khadgar, and two soldiers. She followed them outside. There were horses. Each human went on a mount. Garona and Karandra stood there awkwardly.
"You've never rode a horse?" Lothar asked them with a bit of exasperation in his voice.
They shook their head.
"Garona, climb on that one. Karandra, come with me," he ordered.
"Commander, shouldn't they ride together? The weight for the horse…" one of the soldiers began.
"None of them knows how to ride. That's why the lighter one is riding with me," Lothar interrupted him.
As Garona was figuring how to climb on the animal, he lowered his hand for Karandra. She grabbed it firmly and he hoisted her up on the saddle behind him.
"We ride North!" he announced as he started galloping.
Karandra had no other choice but to hold onto him. She quickly linked her arms around his waist and was pressed against his back.
"Are you alright?" he shouted at her so she could hear him.
"Yes!"
She doesn't have to be more of a burden for them. Truth was, she was not alright at all, far from it. Lothar was so close to her, and she had to hang onto him…
They slowed their pace when they exited Stormwind, but did not stop before the sun had nearly disappeared on the horizon. They were in the mountains, on a little stony path. Lothar dismounted with grace before placing both hands on Karandra's hips, sending an electric shock in her body.
"What are you doing?" she hissed, feeling the blush coming back again.
"Come on, get down the horse," he said with a roll of his eyes as he helped her off the animal.
The others dismounted as well and took their things out of the saddle bags.
"Bookworm," Lothar called. "Take the first watch".
"Respectfully, Commander, my name is Khadgar," the young human retorted.
"My deepest apologies, Khadgar," Lothar mocked him. "You see, I thought we bonded when I didn't put you in a prison cell for breaking in the royal barracks. Take the first watch".
Karandra and Garona snorted discreetly and Karandra walked a few steps to ease the soreness in her legs. She sat down against a rock and looked to the horizon as it burned in red, orange and yellow. She found this world beautiful, and full of surprises. Mostly good ones, for now. But she knew Gul'dan was going to destroy these lands, like he did to the Orc world. She pushed the sorcerer out of her mind and focused on a song she learned recently. She started humming it lightly as the sun completely disappeared.
"It's a beautiful song," a voice said on her left.
She turned and came face to face with one of the two soldiers that were accompanying them. A small smile came on her lips.
"Yes, it is. I learned it from a prisoner, days ago. A young female".
She saw the soldier tense when she said it. Her smile faded. He sat down next to her. A few feet away, the other soldier was preparing their evening meal. Garona was kneeling next to the fire. Khadgar was reading – how surprising. Lothar was staring at her. She felt something run from her neck to the bottom of her spine and looked away.
"How old was she?" the soldier asked, staring at the void.
She frowned, she didn't know all the numbers yet in this language. She showed him with her hands.
"Thirteen?" he said.
"Yes. She was small, with a white skin and golden hair. She was very kind to me," Karandra told him.
"I have a daughter. She is thirteen too. I can't imagine what I would do if she was kidnapped like this…"
Karandra looked down. Those people didn't deserve what Gul'dan was doing to them. She had to help them stop him. She sworn to herself she would stand with the humans, even if she had to die for them.
"I am sorry," she eventually said to the soldier. "I hope your daughter will be safe. I hope you will return to her and see her grow up".
He turned to face her, surprised.
"Thank you," he said after a while. "Can you sing something, please?"
She opened her eyes widely. No one ever asked her something with a "please".
"Yes," she smiled. "But can I ask something too, please?"
"Sure. What is it?"
"I want to know the numbers. I don't speak your language very well yet".
"You do speak it remarkably well for a stranger," he told her. "But here, let me teach you".
They spent the next five minutes counting on their fingers. Garona sometimes gave her a strange look, but didn't say anything.
"Now, will you sing?" he asked her.
She nodded and took a deep breath before starting the song. They all stopped what they were doing and listened to her beautiful voice in the night. Her voice was high but surprisingly sweet, and she was singing slowly, like she tasted every word.
I pirouette in the dark
I see the stars through a mirror
Tired mechanical heart
Beats 'til the song disappears
Somebody shine a light
I'm frozen by the fear in me
Somebody make me feel alive
And shatter me
So, cut me from the line
Dizzy, spinning endlessly
Somebody make me feel alive
And shatter me
Shatter me
She whispered the last words, her voice was shaking a little by the end of the song. She jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
"That was beautiful," the soldier told her.
"Karandra!" a voice called her.
She jumped on her feet and turned to her left. At the opposite of the camp, Lothar was leaning against the rock, eyes focused on her. She made her way to him as the others started eating their supper.
"You sing well. Now eat, and go to sleep".
And with that he left her and went to speak with one of the soldiers. She hanged her head low like a chastised child and grabbed a bowl of stew. She ate in silence, a few feet away from the others. Once she was finished, she curled on herself like a ball in front of the fire. A strong hand shook her shoulder lightly. She turned and saw Lothar towering over her.
"You don't have a blanket?"
She shook her head. He presented his hand to her and pulled her up. He put a hand on her back, not noticing the slight wince she had when his hand pressed on her still fresh scar, and led her a few feet away from the camp. A rock was shielding them from the others' eyes. There was a blanket spread on the floor and another one on top.
"Why are you so kind to me?" she asked him with a frown.
"I don't know," he replied, looking away.
"You are a bad liar," she said bluntly.
He chuckled.
"You can sleep here," he told her. "I'll come later".
"You are sleeping with me?" she asked, shocked.
"Pros of being Commander: I have bigger blankets. There's enough space for two. I can't let you die of cold in the night because my men didn't take enough blankets".
She slowly nodded. He was doing it out of duty, of course.
"I'm going to check the perimeter. Do you want to come?" he asked her.
She nodded. They started walking in the dark in silence.